Getty Images/Michael Tran
It happens every year. We go into the Emmys hoping for thrills, for surprises, for inspiration, and we come out the other side tired, bored, and begrudging Modern Family. As per usual, this year’s ceremony offered plenty of detestable moments, both in the form of award snubs and onstage bits that don’t seem to have been thought through. In all honesty, a comprehensive list of the things that incurred violent eye rolls at the 66th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards would take even longer to read than the never-ending show did to watch, so here’s a roundup of the top achievements in the organization’s unparalleled artistry of regret: the worst moments from this year’s Emmys.
Why, Weird Al, why?
Shortly after reminding us of his irreverent genius with the release of the long-awaited studio album Mandatory Fun, Weird Al Yankovic took the Emmys stage mid-ceremony to perform a patchwork of quick, lazy parodies to the theme songs of the night’s various nominated comedy and drama programs (most notably Mad Men, Game of Thrones, and Modern Family). None of the obvious, haphazard lyrics lived up to Al’s established ingenuity, barely earning a laugh throughout the act.
Does anybody else hear wind chimes?
The average Emmy viewer began to question his own sanity last night when the program began inscrutably ringing wind chimes to mark the victories of some of its big winners. The perplexing, noxious sound was enough to institute a subconscious resentment of whatever party had just taken the stage to collect his or her golden statue. We thought we were happy for Bryan Cranston until a high-pitched clanging washed the whole episode in general unpleasantness. Now we can’t even remember who we were rooting for!
Aren't we over Sherlock?
In its inceptive years, Sherlock was an interesting, fun, and inviting new miniseries. But this past season, the writing observed a qualitative decline and the acting showed off nothing new. With so many interesting and talented players up against Martin Freeman (the entire Normal Heart supporting cast) and Benedict Cumberbatch (Mark Ruffalo, Idris Elba, and the Fargo fellas... including his own costar Freeman, who we'd rather have seen win for the FX series than for the BBC detective show) and writer Steven Moffat, we can't really sign off on this year's wins.
That one off-putting clip in the Robin Williams tribute
We don’t mean to cast a foul shadow over the heartfelt remembrance of Robin Williams, but we can’t help but find it odd that the Emmys chose to include a clip of him affecting racial stereotypes among its rather short montage of his material. With so much standup gold, late night circuit merriment, and Mork and Mindy treasure to choose from, why stoop to such a questionable selection?
Do you see Rosco now, Stephen? Is he in the room with us?
We’ve spent years enjoying Stephen Colbert’s contribution to the political satire circuit, and plan to enjoy many more beside him as he graduates to hosting The Late Show. But every once in a while, the comic mastermind throws out a clunker, namely his “imaginary friend” shtick that earned (duly) zero laughs. Colbert stretched a weird one-note joke much longer than we hoped he would when he prattled on about the lack of appreciation for his invisible costar Rosco. It didn’t have the cleverness or imagination of Colbert’s usual esoteric material… it was just silly and, quite frankly, dumb.
Hey, Emmys, you guys see that new show Orange Is the New Black?
You could make viable cases for Louie and Veep as the deserving owners of this year’s Outstanding Comedy Series Award, but a little part of each of us was rooting for Orange Is the New Black. Speaking sociopolitically, the Netflix series is offering its viewers more progressive characters, relationships, and situations than Modern Family is so often credited with doing: while the ABC sitcom relegates its gay and Latina characters to jokes about home décor and mispronunciation, OITNB actually celebrates and explores its roster’s diversity sincerely… and it manages to be funny all the while.
Stop milking the folksiness!
Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey are both talented actors, a fact exhibited most prominently by their partnership on HBO's True Detective. And while we may love them as actors, and even perhaps as celebrities, they both seem to be milking their fame for all its worth. Sure, an entertaining routine is welcome in any awards show presentation, but Harrelson and McConaughey seemed to have eschewed a written-and-rehearsed comedy bit in favor of a few moments of self-serving rabbelrousing.
The general air of predictability
Yes, many of us were ecstatic for Breaking Bad stars Cranston, Anna Gunn, and Jesse Pinkman. No, we don't have the energy to maintain fury over the victories of Modern Family and Jim Parsons year after year. It's just the complete lack of suspense, surprise, or even the pretense of possibility that can be a little bit numbing to those tuning in. Do we really live in such a formulaic time for artistic expression? Doesn't it eat at us to accept that invention and originality, projects that actually challenge us, are so seldom rewarded, while the same shows and stars year after year are granted accolades for keeping us comfortable? Can't we... eh, who cares, at least we finally have our Simpsons marathon.
And the very worst moment of this or, quite possibly, any Emmys ceremony...
The Award goes to... Sofia Vergara, for The Epitome of Sexist Objectification!
There's a fine line between parody and reality, between upholding reprehensible behavior satirically and doing so earnestly. But the Emmys' Sofia Vergara-on-a-spinning-pedestal bit does not come close to that line. It lives far, far to one side, happily resting in its own sexist comforts, where women are deemed objects and the very idea of questioning the validity in this viewpoint is worthy of chuckles. The Modern Family star stood happily atop a rotating platform, devolving to little more than something to gawk at while her partner in crime, Chairman of the Television Academy Bruce Rosenblum, giddily mocked the idea that what they were doing was at all problematic. That's bad. Gwen Stefani mispronouncing "Colbert"-levels bad.
Follow @Michael Arbeiter | Follow @Hollywood_com

ABC
Following the Emmys' traditional In Memorium segment, honoring a collection of television greats who sadly passed away over the course of this past year, the ceremony paid individual tribute to a particularly beloved figure: Robin Williams. Billy Crystal, a friend and colleague of Williams', took the stage to speak personally about the comedic genius. Crystal spoke wistfully of Williams' great line of works, of his many successful endeavors to make the world a funnier place. But the highlight of his well-crafted speech came from his own life experience, spending time with his pal Robin at Comic Relief events and family functions.
Crystal remembered attending a charity baseball game with fish-out-of-water Williams, who made up for his own lack of familiarity with the sport by inventing a Russian character and tossing jokes about professional ballplaying in his home country. Furthermore, Crystal recounted with adoration Williams' penchant for joking around with Billy's older relatives, describing our cherished star as always ready with a gag, no matter the situation. Crystal illustrated just how much fun Williams had with bits like these, citing such an example as the sort of shtick that would fill his eyes with light.
Following Crystal's speech, the ceremony offered clips of Williams' work on the late night circuit, on sitcom TV, and on the live stage. Despite the odd choice that was one clip of Williams performing a comedy routine about racial stereotypes (why opt for such material when he's got legions of more admirable gold to choose from?), we can't help but remember the great contribution Williams made to comedy the world over.

Beyonce, Miley Cyrus and Katy Perry ruled the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards at The Forum in Inglewood, California on Sunday (24Aug14), by picking up the biggest honours. The Roar hitmaker took home the first Moonman trophy of the night for Best Female Video for Dark Horse and was joined onstage by rapper Juicy J who appeared on the track.
Cyrus, who returned to the prizegiving a year after causing a stir with her raunchy routine with Blurred Lines singer Robin Thicke, was all about the message this year, choosing to use her Video of the Year acceptance speech for Wrecking Ball to pay tribute to homeless youths.
The pop star sent a man named Jesse to accept the prize on her behalf for the "1.6 million runaways and homeless youths in the United States, who are starving, lost and scared for their lives right now."
He continued, "I know this because I am one of these people... If you want to make a powerful change in the world right now, please join us and go to Miley's Facebook.com page. A dream you dream alone is only a dream, but a dream you dream together is reality."
Beyonce was feted with the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award and wowed the crowd with a show-stopping performance featuring a medley of hits from her self-titled album, including Partition, Flawless and Drunk in Love.
After her stunning set, which brought the audience to its feet, she was presented with the accolade by daughter Blue Ivy and husband Jay Z, who called his wife "the greatest living entertainer."
Beyonce tearfully accepted her award, saying, "I'm so full. Thank you, I have nothing to say, but I'm filled with so much gratitude. I just thank God for this moment and I love y'all so much. Blue I love you, my beloved I love you, my fans I love you, MTV I love you, goodnight."
The moment appeared to be her bid to once and for all end divorce rumours.
Ed Sheeran and Fifth Harmony were also big winners, taking home the Best Male Video and Artist to Watch awards, respectively.
Ariana Grande, Nicki Minaj and Jessie J kicked off the ceremony with Grande singing her hit Break Free, followed by Nicki Minaj giving a jungle-themed performance of her new track Anaconda.
Jessie J then started off the trio's new hit song Bang Bang, but Minaj suffered an embarrassing wardrobe malfunction when she did not complete her quick-change in time and was forced to hold the front of her dress together so as to not expose her bare breasts as she returned to the stage.
Other performance highlights included Sam Smith with his hit song Stay With Me and Maroon 5, who made their VMAs debut with a performance of Maps outside of the venue.
Iggy Azalea and Rita Ora also hit the The Forum stage for their first-ever live performance of Black Widow.
There was also a couple of serious moments in among the festivities - Robin Williams, who passed away earlier this month (Aug14), was remembered and rapper Common asked for a moment of silence for Missouri teenager, Michael Brown, who was killed by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri on 9 August (14), sparking the ongoing unrest in the state.
The 2014 MTV VMAs winners at press time were:
Video of the Year - Wrecking Ball by Miley Cyrus
Best Hip-Hop Video - Hold On (We're Going Home) by Drake featuring Majid Jordan
Best Male Video - Sing by Ed Sheeran
Best Female Video - Dark Horse by Katy Perry featuring Juicy J
Best Pop Video - Problem by Ariana Grande featuring Iggy Azalea
Artist to Watch - Fifth Harmony
Best Rock Video - Royals by Lorde
Best Lyric Video - Don't Stop by 5 Seconds of Summer
MTV Clubland Award - Stay the Night by Zedd featuring Hayley Williams
Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award - Beyonce

CBS
Given the success of NCIS and NCIS: Los Angeles, it was a no-brainer for CBS to extend the franchise to New Orleans in a new series debuting this fall. Check out where all three NCIS shows are filming right now.
NCIS
NCIS, which recently celebrated its 250th episode, returns for a 12th season on Sept. 23.
Today, the show is filming scenes for for the upcoming season at Valencia Studios in Valencia, CA which has served as their home base since 2003.
NCIS: Los Angeles
NCIS: L.A. is currently filming at 104 Fremont Pl, Los Angeles, a swanky residence in a gated community that was also featured in The Artist.
The show is moving to a new Monday night timeslot when it returns to CBS this fall.
CBS
NCIS: New Orleans
Filming is already underway on NCIS: NOLA, starring Scott Bakula, CCH Pounder and Zoe McLellan, and this week they are filming at one of New Orleans' most famous historic site: the U.S.S. Kidd. The ship was the first to be named after Rear Admiral Isaac C. Kidd who died in the attack on Pearl Harbor and now it will make history again with a prominent role in this NCIS: New Orleans episode.
See what else is filming on location today in my Daily Filming Locations at OnLocationVacations.com!

Actor Michael J. Fox was "stunned" to learn his late friend Robin Williams was secretly suffering from the early stages of Parkinson's Disease at the time of his death on Monday (11Aug14). The tragic Oscar winner was found slumped in a chair at his home in Marin County, California, after apparently taking his own life.
The news of Williams' death was accompanied by speculation concerning the state of his mind, and rumours about his finances and past addiction battles.
His publicist addressed the gossip on Wednesday (13Aug14), insisting Williams had no financial woes, and his widow, Susan Schneider shed light on Williams' state of mind at the time of his death by revealing her husband was sober but still coming to terms with a recent Parkinson's disease diagnosis in a statement released to the media on Thursday (14Aug14).
And following the announcement, Back to the Future star Fox, who has been battling the same debilitating condition since the early 1990s, took to Twitter.com to share his thoughts.
He wrote, "Stunned to learn Robin had PD (Parkinson's Disease). Pretty sure his support for our Fdn (Foundation) predated his diagnosis. A true friend; I wish him peace."
Fox, who was diagnosed with the disease in 1991, disclosed his condition to the public in 1998 and established The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research in 2000.
Since then, his organisation has become the largest non-profit funder of Parkinson's Disease research in the world, and has invested in more than $350 million (GBP209.7 million) in finding a cure.

Stars including John Legend, Kerry Washington, Mark Ruffalo and Pete Wentz have condemned police officers in Ferguson, Missouri for firing tear gas at protesters on Wednesday night (13Aug14). A group of campaigners took to the streets on Wednesday to express their outrage over the death of unarmed teenager Michael Brown, who was shot by a police officer over the weekend (09-10Aug14).
Heavily armed riot police descended on the city centre and used tear gas and rubber bullets to break up the demonstration.
The news has sparked outrage and a number of celebrities took to Twitter.com to voice their disgust.
Legend writes, "The fact that the small town Ferguson police dept (department) has all this equipment should disturb us all. Priorities... Apparently the equipment was brought in from other communities. But still... America is #1 at war and imprisoning. I wish we were #1 at building infrastructure and health care and educating our kids."
Scandal actress Washington adds, "What's happening in #Ferguson is devastating. Wow," and Fall Out Boy rocker Wentz writes, "Photos out of #Ferguson look like more like a war zone."
Ruffalo shared a link to the story and added, "No, it's not Baghdad, it's in America tonight," while dance artist Moby concludes, "Nothing makes me more ashamed of America than the abuse of power. Our country is supposed to be ruled by laws, not the gestapo (Nazi secret police)... dear #Ferguson police, your job is to protect people and respect the law. Or did you all skip police school on the day that was taught?... a reminder: It is 100 per cent LEGAL to photograph or film the police anywhere in the U.S. it's our first amendment right. #Ferguson #AbuseOfPower."
Glee star Amber Riley, Grey's Anatomy actor Jesse Williams and singer Sam Sparro also waded into the debate on Twitter.

Miramax via Everett Collection
Between the two of us, my friend Jay and I had probably watched Good Will Hunting more than 50 times through. Like many, we had attached with sincerity to the story of a practically prepubescent Matt Damon, a genius of the Boston slums. As such, the familiar embrace of this particular movie seemed like a good choice when he showed up at my apartment — unanounced, as per usual — with the news that he and his girlfriend had just broken up.
As we sat in my living room on what I remember to be a bizarrely humid afternoon for upstate New York's autumn, trying our best to invest in the rise and fall of the prodigious Will Hunting, we both experienced something new. We weren't watching the very same movie that we had time and time over; we weren't adhered with irreverent empathy to the misunderstood bad boy that we both so vapidly wanted to be (and oh, that hair). Instead, our attentions turned with unprecedented domination to his screen partner: not the cackling Ben Affleck, but Robin Williams. As Sean Maguire, Williams always seemed more like a background player, a vehicle for Will's transport through his troubles. That is until this unusually muggy Sunday when Sean's charms and strengths seemed to rear themselves in a new way altogether.
We noticed, sharing our discovery tacitly, that in even the heaviest scenes, Williams was able to command a sharp, hearty laugh. Mere syllables uttered by the master of performance, portraying a man who embodied the idea of disgruntlement, sent Jay and I into delirious cackling fits. Williams was doing more with this role — the would-be square straight man part to the effortlessly cool Damon's young, debonair rebel — than we had ever understood. He was playing anger, judgment, and frustration in a very special way. A way that conveyed colossal pain and tremendous humor all at once.
After so many views of Good Will Hunting, we had discovered anew just how funny it was. And from this was born our mission: we decided to dub over it. A project pioneered in the interest of emancipating Jay from concentration on his heartbreak, we leapt into intense study of the film — of Damon's swagger, of Ben Affleck's buffoonery, and most of all, of one Robin Williams' freshly realized exhilirating display of dry humor.
Jay, whose timber was more conducive to the leading man position, played Will. I happily nabbed Affleck's Chuckie. We traded off the Stellan Skarsgaard and Cole Hauser roles, and left all of Casey Affleck's original dialogue in the finished product... for good measure. And I, the significantly faster speaker, was lucky enough to play the coveted role: Robin Williams.
To everyone else our project seemed like a bout of idiocy. Occasionally, we submitted to this designation. But we weren't in this to waste our junior year, or even (as so many seemed to think) to mock or parody a movie that we had seen one too many times. No, we were in it because we saw something in Williams and his role that spoke to us at that time. In the dark hours that met with Sean Maguire, he — or maybe Williams — made us laugh. Hardly at the expense of empathy or sincerity; in fact, Williams/Maguire's ability to incite a chuckle in the very interest of some of the most emotionally substantial scenes in Gus Van Sant's film is what stirred and provoked us so. That's exactly what Jay needed at this time — to find laughter when flat drama was more readily available.
And it's what I came to need, several months later — our project having fallen by the wayside, what with plenty of other understandable distractions getting in the way — when my own blossoming romance came to a crashing halt. "We've got to finish that movie," I decided then, thinking back on the carnal laughter incited by our scholarly expedition of Williams' every meticulous nuance.
We did. We stayed up 'til 3 throughout the week, watching, laughing, revising, remodeling... we'd turn away chances to go out with our friends — you know, like normal people — to stay in Jay's room and work on this masterpiece. We fell hard and fast in love with our take on Good Will Hunting. On Matt Damon and Ben Affleck's clunky but charming script, Gus Van Sant's occasionally schmaltzy direction. And Robin Williams' profoundly empathetic and hilarious performance.
By the time we were finished, our respective heartaches had won new perspective. Call it an effective distraction, or maybe it was just therapeutic. But I don't think quite anything would have worked so well to inspire the greatest creative exploit that the two of us would ever bring to life, nor would just anything help to foster us through lost love with such efficiency. There was just something about that messy, cathartic, ultimately special little movie, and the bearded man who stole the show.
It had to be Good Will Hunting. It had to be Robin Williams.
Follow @Michael Arbeiter | Follow @Hollywood_com

Buena Vista Pictures via Everett Collection
As ardently as we fans might have loved Robin Williams, it appears that his colleagues, costars, and friends adored him a dozen times over. In the wake of the actor's tragic death, those who've worked with Williams in the past are taking to Twitter to express their sadness over the news as well as their appreciation for the man and his gifts for comedy and kindess alike:
Harvey Fierstein, Mrs. Doubtfire
A favorite moment with Robin: Flying on private jet role playing. I was Charo and he was Cugat's chiuahuha. Oh, how we laughed.
— Harvey Fierstein (@HarveyFierstein) August 12, 2014
Robin was friend, boss, brother, inspiration... His generosity &amp; intelligence knew no limits. Only his home planet could destroy him.
— Harvey Fierstein (@HarveyFierstein) August 12, 2014
Forest Whitaker, Good Morning, Vietnam
U touched our lives U touched our hearts U gave us laughter n joy U'r a beautiful soul U will be missed Our love to the family RIP Robin W.
— Forest Whitaker (@ForestWhitaker) August 12, 2014
Casey Affleck, Good Will Hunting
@robinwilliams was a kind and brilliant man. A great light has gone out.
— Casey Affleck (@CaseyAffleck) August 11, 2014
Juliette Lewis, The Fisher King
That kind of goodness of spirit doesnt ever die. You can all on its embrace at any moment. #RobinWilliams http://t.co/XOOsmKOyZ8
— Juliette Lewis (@JulietteLewis) August 12, 2014
Sarah Michelle Gellar, The Crazy Ones
pic.twitter.com/4Pyx4Kfuxe
— Sarah Michelle (@RealSMG) August 12, 2014
Hank Azaria, The Birdcage
What I'll remember about Robin most was his genuine kindness and love of people. On set and off.
— Hank Azaria (@HankAzaria) August 12, 2014
Jennifer Lopez, Jack
Sad, sad, day... My condolences to Robin’s family. He brought light to every room he entered &amp; was a true comedic genius. #RIPRW
— Jennifer Lopez (@JLo) August 12, 2014
David Alan Grier, Jumanji
Rest in Peace Robin Williams. I had the honor and joy of working with him. I miss him already...
— David Alan Grier (@davidalangrier) August 11, 2014
Ben Stiller, Night at the Museum
A tweet cannot begin to describe the hugeness of Robin Williams heart and soul and talent. This is so sad. #RobinWilliams
— Ben Stiller (@RedHourBen) August 12, 2014
OK, I’ll try. I met him when I was 13 and a huge fan and he was so kind and I watched him be kind to every fan i ever saw him with...
— Ben Stiller (@RedHourBen) August 12, 2014
And with other actors he was so generous and brilliant. He made everyone feel special and equal around him even though he was the genius...
— Ben Stiller (@RedHourBen) August 12, 2014
His heart was so big and even if you didn’t know him, what he gave everyone was that same spirit in his work, so we all felt it…
— Ben Stiller (@RedHourBen) August 12, 2014
His impact on the world was so positive. He did so much good for people. He made me and so many people laugh so hard for a very long time.
— Ben Stiller (@RedHourBen) August 12, 2014
And because they don’t really tweet, this message represents all the Stillers (Jerry, Anne and Amy) who Robin was a great friend to. xxxxx
— Ben Stiller (@RedHourBen) August 12, 2014
Cole Hauser, Good Will Hunting
We lost a great entertainer today, but more importantly a wonderful man. U will be missed my friend. Sleep with the angeles. @robinwilliams
— Cole Hauser (@colehauser) August 12, 2014
Henry Winkler, Happy Days
Robin Williams was like no other ..To watch him create on the spot was a privilege to behold.. Robin you are an angel now !!! REST IN PEACE
— Henry Winkler (@hwinkler4real) August 11, 2014
Ron Howard, Happy Days
We lost Robin...1st witnessed his genius as he created Mork B4 our eyes in 2 hrs on set. A Force. A Sweet Soul. A Brilliant Artist. RIP
— Ron Howard (@RealRonHoward) August 12, 2014
Danny DeVito, Death to Smoochy
Heartbroken
— Danny DeVito (@DannyDeVito) August 12, 2014
Cheryl Hines, RV
He was one of my favorite people. #RobinWilliams pic.twitter.com/APxbRxrYGw
— Cheryl Hines (@CherylHines) August 12, 2014

Robin Williams' daughter Zelda has written a heartfelt tribute to her father online, following his death on Monday (11Aug14). The Mrs. Doubtfire star was found dead in his home in Marin County, California, aged 63. Initial reports suggest he committed suicide and his publicist confirmed he had been suffering from depression.
Celebrities flooded to social media to pay tribute to the funnyman, including his Happy Days co-star Henry Winkler plus actors Johnny Depp, Michael J. Fox and Sarah Michelle Gellar, and U.S. President Barack Obama.
His actress daughter Zelda has now added her own touching tribute to her late father, posting a quote by French writer and poet Antoine De Saint-Exupery that reads, "You - you alone will have the stars as no one else has them... In one of the stars I shall be living. In one of them I shall be laughing. And so it will be as if all the stars were laughing, when you look at the sky at night... You - only you - will have stars that can laugh."
Following the quote, she adds, "I love you. I miss you. I'll try to keep looking up. Z"
The 25 year old is the daughter of Williams and his second wife Marsha Garces. The actor was married three times and had two other children.